Refrigerator and drawer-type door for refrigerator

ABSTRACT

A refrigerator includes a drawer-type door with a vertical adjustment unit. The drawer-type door includes a front cover for a storage compartment, a support frame coupled to the back side of the cover and operable to slide along a rail, a storage container coupled to the support frame and a vertical adjustment unit configured to adjust a vertical position of the cover. The vertical adjustment unit includes a knob rotatably coupled to the support frame via a rotary screw and comprising a plurality of cam surfaces with different distances from the rotary screw. The cover&#39;s vertical position varies with the knob&#39;s rotational position. As a user rotates the knob to a predetermined rotational position, a stopper disposed on the cover can retain the knob&#39;s position through contact with one of the cam surfaces. Thereby the cover is adjusted to a new height.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is based on and claims priority from Korean Patent Application No. 10-2017-0017520, filed on Feb. 8, 2017, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference for all purposes.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to refrigerators, and more particularly, to doors of refrigerators.

BACKGROUND

A refrigerator is an appliance used for storing food or other items at low temperature, e.g., in a frozen state or refrigerated state.

The interior of a refrigerator is cooled by circulation of cold air which can be continuously generated as a refrigerant recycles through compression, condensation, expansion and evaporation cycles. Cold air supplied in the refrigerator is uniformly distributed by convection.

A refrigerator typically includes a main body having a rectangular parallelepiped shape with a front opening. A refrigeration compartment and a freezer compartment may be disposed in the main body, each covered by a door. Drawers, racks, storage boxes and the like for sorting different kinds of items may be disposed in the internal storage space of the refrigerator.

In conventional refrigerators, a drawer-type door attached to a storage compartment may have a vertical step difference due to manufacturing errors, assembling errors or the like. Such a step difference may significantly compromise the appearance and retail value of a product and may cause poor sealing.

Reference Document: Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2004-0045808

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a drawer-type door on a refrigerator that has a mechanism to readily adjust a position of the drawer-type door vertically and horizontally and thereby reduce the vertical step difference thereof.

In accordance with an aspect, a refrigerator includes: a main body having a plurality of storage compartments disposed in a vertically spaced-apart relationship with each other; a rail extending in a front-back direction of one of the storage compartments; and a drawer-type door operable to slide along the rail to open and close one of the storage compartments, wherein the drawer-type door includes a cover configured to cover a front side of a storage compartment, a support frame coupled to a back side of the cover and operable to slide along the rail, a storage container seated on the support frame and configured to be accommodated in one of the storage compartments, and a vertical adjustment unit configured to adjust a vertical position of the cover.

The vertical adjustment unit may include a stopper coupled to the cover, and a knob rotatably coupled to the support frame via a rotary screw. The knob can be rotated by a user, and brought into contact with an upper side of the stopper via one of several cam surfaces having different distances from the rotary screw. When the user releases the knob, the stopper can retain the position of the knob through the contact. An elastic member (e.g., a spring) is elastically coupled between the rotary screw and the knob.

The support frame has a slot through which a fixing screw is inserted to fix the support frame to the cover. The slot may extend in a vertical direction and may be used to adjust the vertical position of the cover.

Further, in the support frame, a temporary assembling groove through which the stopper passes may be disposed below the knob.

The cam surfaces may include: a reference cam surface spaced from the rotary screw by a reference distance; and a plurality of decrement cam surfaces disposed on one side of the reference cam surface. Each decrement cam surface is spaced from the rotary screw by a distance smaller than the reference distance. The cam surfaces may also include a plurality of increment cam surfaces disposed on the other side of the reference cam surface. Each increment cam surface is spaced from the rotary screw by a distance larger than the reference distance.

The drawer-type door may further include a horizontal adjustment unit configured to adjust a horizontal position of the cover.

The horizontal adjustment unit may include a knob rotatably coupled to the cover via a rotary screw. The knob can be rotated by a user and brought into contact with a stopper via one of the cam surfaces of the knob. When the user releases the knob, the stopper can retain the position of the knob through the contact. The cam surfaces have different distances from the rotary screw. An elastic member is elastically held between the rotary screw and the knob.

According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, not only the vertical installation height of the cover but also the horizontal installation position of the cover can be adjusted easily.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front view illustrating the exterior configuration of a refrigerator according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an exemplary drawer-type door on a refrigerator according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view illustrating the “A” part in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a partial perspective view illustrating an exemplary vertical adjustment unit for a drawer-type door according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a front view illustrating the exemplary vertical adjustment unit of the drawer-type door according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a front view illustrating the configuration of an exemplary horizontal adjustment unit of a drawer-type door according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof. The illustrative embodiments described in the detailed description, drawings, and claims are not meant to be limiting. Other embodiments may be utilized, and other changes may be made, without departing from the spirit or scope of the subject matter presented here.

One or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which one or more exemplary embodiments of the disclosure can be easily determined by those skilled in the art. As those skilled in the art will realize, the described exemplary embodiments may be modified in various different ways, all without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure, which is not limited to the exemplary embodiments described herein.

It is noted that the drawings are schematic and are not necessarily dimensionally illustrated. Relative sizes and proportions of parts in the drawings may be exaggerated or reduced in size, and a predetermined size is merely exemplary and not limiting. The same reference numerals designate the same structures, elements, or parts illustrated in two or more drawings in order to exhibit similar characteristics.

The exemplary drawings of the present disclosure illustrate ideal exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure in more detail. As a result, various modifications of the drawings are expected. Accordingly, the exemplary embodiments are not limited to a specific form of the illustrated region, and for example, include modifications due to manufacturing.

FIG. 1 is a front view illustrating the exterior configuration of a refrigerator according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an exemplary drawer-type door on a refrigerator according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view illustrating the “A” part in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is a partial perspective view illustrating an exemplary vertical adjustment unit for a drawer-type door according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 5 is a front view illustrating the exemplary vertical adjustment unit and an exemplary horizontal adjustment unit of the drawer-type door according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 5, the refrigerator 1 may include a main body 200 having a plurality of storage compartments, rails 300 extending in a front-back direction in the storage compartments, and a drawer-type door 100 capable of adjusting a step difference of a cover 110 and covering the front of one or more storage compartments.

More specifically, the main body 200 is a housing that defines an outer shell of the refrigerator. A plurality of storage compartments may be disposed in the main body 200 and arranged in a vertical array. For example, two storage compartments behind the hinged doors 201 may be disposed in the upper portion of the main body 200. One storage compartment behind the drawer-type door 100 may be disposed in the lower portion of the main body 200. Of course, the present disclosure is not limited to such arrangement. The position, type and number of the storage compartments in the main body 200 may vary in different embodiments.

As part of the storage compartment in the lower portion of the main body 200, the drawer-type door 100 may be operable to move in the front-back direction of the accommodation space. To this end, the rails 300 are mounted in the storage compartment for guiding the movement of the drawer-type door 100. The rails 300 extend in the front-back direction of the storage compartment and the drawer-type door 100 can slide along the rails 300.

The drawer-type door 100 includes a cover 110 for covering the front side of a storage compartment, support frames 120 coupled to the back side of the cover 110 and operable to slide along the rails 300, a storage container (not shown) supported by the support frames 120 accommodated in the storage compartment, and a vertical adjustment unit 140 for adjusting the position of the cover 110 in the vertical direction.

Thus, the cover 110 is part of the outer shell of the main body 200. A user may push and pull the cover to access the storage container coupled to it. The upper portion of the cover 110 may have a handle for gripping. The cover may have grip grooves serving as a handle. A pair of support frames 120 extending backward may be disposed in both end portions of the cover 110.

Each of the support frames 120 may include a first frame 120 a fixed to the back surface of the cover 110, and a second frame 120 b coupled to the first frame 120 a and operable to move along the rails 300. In the first frame 120 a, a slot 121 may extend in the vertical direction. A fixing screw (not shown) can be inserted in the slot 121 for fixing the first frame 120 a to the cover 110. The slot can be used to facilitate vertical position adjustment for the cover 110. On one side of the first frame 120 a, a temporary assembling groove 122 may be located below a knob 142 which is described in greater detail below. A stopper 141 for supporting a lower surface (cam surface) of the knob 142 may be assembled with the cover 110 through the temporary assembling groove 122.

The vertical adjustment unit 140 may include a stopper 141 fixed to the cover 110, a knob 142 rotatably coupled to each of the support frames 120 via a rotary screw 144, and an elastic member 143 elastically coupled between the rotary screw 144 and the knob 142.

The stopper 141 is fixed to the cover 110 by a fixing screw 146. After assembled, at least the outer peripheral surface of the stopper 141 contacts and supports one sidewall of the knob 142. In the present embodiment, the stopper 141 is a circular support piece. However, the present disclosure is not limited to this configuration. The stopper 141 may have any other suitable configuration as long as it can contact and retain a position of the knob 142.

The knob 142 has a switch structure capable of rotating about the rotary screw 144. Since the knob 142 is elastically supported by the elastic member 143, a user may rotate the knob 142 about the rotary screw 144 while pulling the knob 142 outward.

Around an assembly hole of each of the support frames 120 into which the rotary screw 144 is assembled, a plurality of position adjustment grooves 123 may be disposed and circumferentially spaced apart from each other. In this example, the position adjustment grooves 123 are insertion holes, each of which can accommodate an adjustment projection (not shown) formed on a contact surface of the knob 142. Thus, when a user rotates the knob 142 to a predetermined angle and then releases the knob 142, the adjustment projection of the knob 142 may be inserted into and retained by a corresponding position adjustment groove 123.

The side of the knob 142 is composed of cam surfaces 145 having different distances from the rotary screw 144. Each of the cam surfaces 145 is operable to contact the upper side of the stopper 141 to be supported thereby. For example, the cam surfaces 145 may include a reference cam surface 145 a spaced apart by a reference distance from the rotary screw 144 and a plurality of decrement cam surfaces 145 b on one side of the reference cam surface 145 a. Each decrement cam surface is spaced from the rotary screw 144 by a distance smaller than the reference distance. The cam surfaces 145 may also include a plurality of increment cam surfaces 145 c on the other side of the reference cam surface 145 a. Each increment cam surface is spaced from the rotary screw 144 by a distance larger than the reference distance.

The cover's vertical position varies with the knob's rotational position. During operation, when the knob 142 is rotated in a first direction until one of the decrement cam surfaces 145 b is brought to contact with, and stopped by, the stopper 141, the cover 110 may be vertically positioned closer to each of the support frames 120 than an original position. When the knob 142 is rotated in a second direction until one of the increment cam surfaces 145 c is brought to contact with, and stopped by, the outer peripheral surface of the stopper 141, the cover 110 is vertically positioned further from each of the support frames 120 than an original position.

In the present embodiment, as the knob 142 is rotated clockwise from the base position in which the reference cam surface 145 a is in contact with the stopper (as indicated by the label “0.0”), the height of the cover 110 can be raised by up to 3 mm in increments of 1 mm. If the knob 142 is rotated counterclockwise from the base position, the height of the cover 110 can be lowered up to −3 mm in decrements of 1 mm.

The elastic member 143 may be a spring elastically coupled between the rotary screw 144 and the knob 142. In a normal state, the elastic member 143 may provide a tension for retaining the adjustment projection of the knob 142 in one of the position adjustment grooves 123. When the knob 142 is pulled outward by a user, the elastic member 143 is compressed. In this state, a user can rotate the knob 142, and, when the knob 142 is rotated to one of the predetermined positions, one of the cam surfaces 145 can push against the upper side of the stopper 141. When the user release the knob 142, the stopper 141 can retain the position of the knob 142. Thus, the vertical installation position of the cover 110 with respect to each of the support frames 120 may be adjusted by a distance that is determined by the distance between the cam surface and the rotary screw 144. As a result, the height of the cover 110 as viewed from the outside of the main body 200 can be advantageously adjusted, and correspondingly the step difference in the drawer-type door 100 can be adjusted.

FIG. 6 is a front view illustrating the configuration of an exemplary horizontal adjustment unit of a drawer-type door according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

As illustrated in FIG. 6, the refrigerator according to another embodiment of the present disclosure may include a main body 200 having a plurality of storage compartments, rails 300 extending in a front-back direction of the storage compartments, and a drawer-type door 100 configured to be able to adjust vertical and horizontal positions of a front cover 110 of the storage compartments.

The configurations other than a horizontal adjustment unit 150 of the drawer-type door 100, namely the configurations of the main body 200, the rails 300, the cover 110 of the drawer-type door 100, the support frames 120, the storage container and the vertical adjustment unit 140 of the refrigerator according to another embodiment of the present disclosure, are the same as those of the refrigerator according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Thus, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The horizontal adjustment unit 150 may include a knob 142′ rotatably coupled to the cover 110 via a rotary screw 144′. The knob 142′ can be retained at several rotational positions through contact with the stopper 141. An elastic member (not shown) is elastically coupled between the rotary screw 144′ and the knob 142′.

The cover's horizontal position varies with the knob's 142′ rotational position. For example, if a user pulls the knob 142′ of the horizontal adjustment unit 150 outward, the elastic member is compressed. In this state, as a user rotates the knob 142′ about the rotary screw 144′ clockwise or counterclockwise, the knob 142′ can be rotated by a predetermined angle so that one of the cam surfaces of the knob 142′ can push against the stopper 141. As the user releases the knob 142′, its position can be retained by the stopper 141. In this manner, the horizontal installation position of the cover 110 with respect to each of the support frames 120 may be adjusted due to the distance between the cam surface and the rotary screw 144′.

In the present embodiment, if the knob 142′ is rotated clockwise from a base position in which the reference cam surface contacts the stopper, the cover 110 can be moved to the left (as shown in FIG. 6) by up to 3 mm in increments of 1 mm. If the knob 142′ is rotated counterclockwise from the base position, the cover 110 can be moved to the right side in FIG. 6 by up to 3 mm in increments of 1 mm.

By rotating the horizontal adjustment unit 150 to a predetermined rotational position and using the stopper to retain the unit 150 at this position, the horizontal installation position of the cover 110 can be adjusted. Also, as described above, by rotating the vertical adjustment unit 140 to a predetermined rotational position and using the stopper 141 to retain the unit 140 at this position, the vertical installation height of the cover 110 can be adjusted.

As described above, the installation position of the cover can be adjusted by changing the installation height of the support frame coupled to the cover. As a result, the step difference in the drawer-type door can be advantageously reduced. The installation position of the cover can be adjusted by merely actuating operations of pulling and rotating the knob. Thus a user can rapidly and easily adjust the step difference in the drawer-type door. The vertical installation height and the horizontal installation position of the cover can both be adjusted.

Although exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are described above with reference to the accompanying drawings, those skilled in the art will understand that the present disclosure may be implemented in various ways without changing the necessary features or the spirit of the present disclosure.

Therefore, it should be understood that the exemplary embodiments described above are not limiting, but only an example in all respects. The scope of the present disclosure is expressed by claims below, not the detailed description, and it should be construed that all changes and modifications achieved from the meanings and scope of claims and equivalent concepts are included in the scope of the present disclosure.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that various embodiments of the present disclosure have been described herein for purposes of illustration, and that various modifications may be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. The exemplary embodiments disclosed in the specification of the present disclosure do not limit the present disclosure. The scope of the present disclosure will be interpreted by the claims below, and it will be construed that all techniques within the scope equivalent thereto belong to the scope of the present disclosure. 

What is claimed is :
 1. A refrigerator comprising: a main body comprising a plurality of storage compartments; a rail extending in a front-back direction of one of said plurality of storage compartments; and a drawer-type door coupled to the rail and configured to slide along the rail, wherein the drawer-type door comprises: a cover configured to cover a storage compartment; a support frame coupled to a back side of the cover and operable to slide along the rail; and a vertical adjustment unit configured to adjust a vertical position of the cover.
 2. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the vertical adjustment unit comprises a knob rotatably coupled to the support frame via a rotary screw and comprising a plurality of cam surfaces having different distances from the rotary screw, and wherein further the vertical position of the cover varies with a rotational position of the knob.
 3. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the vertical adjustment unit comprises: a knob rotatably coupled to the support frame via a rotary screw and comprising a plurality of cam surfaces having different distances from the rotary screw; and a stopper disposed on the cover and configured to retain the knob at a rotational position through contact with a cam surface of the knob.
 4. The refrigerator of claim 3, wherein the vertical adjustment unit further comprises an elastic member elastically coupled between the rotary screw and the knob.
 5. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the support frame comprises a slot extending in a vertical direction and a fixing screw inserted in the slot, and wherein the fixing screw is configured to fix the support frame to the cover.
 6. The refrigerator of claim 3, wherein the support frame comprises a temporary assembly groove disposed below the knob and operable to allow the stopper to pass through.
 7. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein the plurality of cam surfaces comprise: a reference cam surface formed on a circumferential surface of the knob and spaced from the rotary screw by a reference distance; a plurality of decrement cam surfaces disposed on the circumferential surface of the knob and disposed on one side of the reference cam surface, wherein the plurality of decrement cam surfaces are spaced from the rotary screw by distances smaller than the reference distance; and a plurality of increment cam surfaces disposed on the circumferential surface of the knob and disposed on another side of the reference cam surface, wherein the plurality of increment cam surfaces are spaced from the rotary screw by distances larger than the reference distance from the rotary screw.
 8. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the drawer-type door further comprises a horizontal adjustment unit configured to adjust a horizontal position of the cover.
 9. The refrigerator of claim 8, wherein the horizontal adjustment unit comprises: a knob rotatably coupled to the support frame via a rotary screw and comprising a plurality of cam surfaces with different distances from the rotary screw; and a stopper disposed on the cover and configured to retain the knob at a rotational position through contact with a cam surface of the plurality of cam surfaces.
 10. The refrigerator of claim 9, wherein the horizontal adjustment unit further comprises an elastic member elastically coupled between the rotary screw and the knob.
 11. A drawer-type door for a refrigerator, the drawer-type door comprising: a cover configured to cover a front side of a storage compartment of the refrigerator; a support frame coupled to a back side of the cover and configured to slide along a rail mounted in the storage compartment; a storage container coupled to the support frame and accommodated in the storage compartment; and a vertical adjustment unit configured to adjust a vertical position of the cover.
 12. The drawer-type door of claim 11, wherein the vertical adjustment unit comprises a knob rotatably coupled to the support frame via a rotary screw and comprising a plurality of cam surfaces having different distances from the rotary screw, and wherein further a vertical position of the cover varies with a rotational position of the knob.
 13. The drawer-type door of claim 11, wherein the vertical adjustment unit comprises: a knob rotatably coupled to the support frame via a rotary screw and comprising a plurality of cam surfaces having different distances from the rotary screw; a stopper disposed on the cover and configured to retain the knob at a rotational position through contact with a cam surface of the plurality of cam surfaces; and an elastic member elastically coupled between the rotary screw and the knob.
 14. The drawer-type door of claim 11 further comprising a horizontal adjustment unit configured to adjust a horizontal position of the cover.
 15. The drawer-type door of claim 14, wherein the horizontal adjustment unit comprises a knob rotatably coupled to the support frame via a rotary screw and comprising a plurality of cam surfaces with different distances from the rotary screw.
 16. The drawer-type door of claim 14, wherein the horizontal adjustment unit comprises: a knob rotatably coupled to the support frame via a rotary screw and comprising a plurality of cam surfaces with different distances from the rotary screw; a stopper disposed on the cover and configured to retain the knob at a rotational position through contact with a cam surface of the plurality of cam surfaces; and an elastic member elastically coupled between the rotary screw and the knob.
 17. The drawer-type door of claim 16, wherein the plurality of cam surfaces comprises: a reference cam surface formed on a circumferential surface of the knob and spaced from the rotary screw by a reference distance; a plurality of decrement cam surfaces formed on the circumferential surface of the knob and on one side of the reference cam surface, wherein the plurality of decrement cam surfaces are spaced from the rotary screw by distances smaller than the reference distance; and a plurality of increment cam surfaces formed on the circumferential surface of the knob and on the other side of the reference cam surface, wherein the plurality of increment cam surfaces are spaced from the rotary screw by distances larger than the reference distance. 